Based on AnandTech's comprehensive benchmarks, prospective buyers should avoid the pricier $169 USD 2 GB version unless they happen to be obsessed with Skyrim.

With the high-resolution textures sucking up a lot of memory, the 2 GB card was nearly twice as fast in some SkyRim tests, but in virtually every other game it was identical in performance to the cheaper $149 USD 1 GB card. In fact, in some cases the 2 GB card performed worse than its beefier brother, actually. Of course future titles may make better use of the extra GB, but suffice it to say, you may not see (any) difference in many games.

In some games the cheaper GeForce 650 Ti was shown being outperformed by the aggressively discounted Radeon HD 7850 from Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD). But in other titles, the cheaper 650 Ti holds its own.

Bear in mind too that the Radeon HD 7850 is louder, hotter, and sucks down up to 20 more watts under load. And while you can't do multi-GPU on the 650 Ti, at 5.75-inches it's inches shorter than the full-size 8.27-inch Radeon HD 7850.

But the picture is muddied by the fact that the Radeon HD 7850 comes with games, while the currently announced 650 Ti cards do not. Correction: The 650 Ti comes bundled with "Assassin's Creed III".

The size advantage is sacrificed somewhat by the fact that the 650 Ti is perhaps needlessly dual-slot.

[Image Source: Anandtech]

In short, for certain specialized form factors the GeForce 650 Ti is the clear winner, but for standard LAN party boxes and their ilk, it's a close-call between the Radeon HD 7850 and GeForce 650 Ti, with the Radeon perhaps winning on merits of leaving room for expansion (via cross-fire setups).

The only way AMD is keeping in this race is through deep discounting; the Radeon HD 7850 debuted at $250 -- a full $80 above its current price point. But that 1/3rd markdown is economic 101. AMD's early arrival has allowed it to cut prices and stay in the game, even as NVIDIA has caught up and brought to bear an impressive Kepler ensemble.